Upgrades for East Side Lakefront Connections

Slides from the East Side Lakefront Greenway and Downtown Connector Study showing trails and amenities proposed by the Campus District Inc., St. Clair Superior Development and the Warehouse District.

A plan for improving the connections from east side and downtown neighborhoods to the lakefront and upgrading connections along the lakefront between E 9th St and MLK Jr Drive has been passed by the City Planning Commission. A group of Cleveland CDC’s (Campus District, St Clair Superior Development, and the Warehouse District) in concert with the City and the engineering firms of Michael Baker International and the Environmental Design Group put together and sponsored the plan.

The Plain Dealer characterized the plan as a “pragmatic, no frills vision for new trails and neighborhood connections.” Implementation is estimated to cost $24.5 million and breaks down as follows:

$8.1 million to create an 8 foot wide greenway loop or trail along both the North and South Marginal Roads. The North Marginal Road has a greenway trail that would receive an upgrade by moving Burke Airport’s fence 3 feet to the north. This will allow the trail to achieve a uniform width of 8 feet and eliminate the fire hydrants that are in the middle of the current trail.

$5.3 million for a new bike and pedestrian bridge to connect E 18th and Davenport (just north of Lakeside) with the South Marginal Road and the Municipal Parking Lot. This bridge spans the railroad tracks but not the Shoreway/I-90.

$4.5 million for a new bike and pedestrian bridge form E 40th to the North Marginal Road. This bridge would span I-90.

Sidewalk widening on the west side of the E 9th bridge over the Shoreway/I-90 by 14 feet to create “a more generous feel”.

Sidewalk widening on the E 55th bridge over I-90 and also under the lakefront railroad tracks slightly south of the bridge.

Sidewalk widening on the E 72nd/I-90 underpass by removing the median.

Sidewalk widening on the MLK Jr Dr/I-90 underpass by removing the median. Lighting would also be improved.

We have long thought the connection between E 9th/North Coast Harbor and the E 55th Metropark Reservation needed upgrading. The plan achieves a good connection which is the minimum necessary for a well connected lakefront. Other aspects of the plan comprehensively address the connections from the neighborhoods. They are indispensable building blocks for the public use of our lakefront. Read the Plain Dealer story here.